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The still somewhat premature playoff picture: Week 12

On 12/02/2009, In NFL, Sports News, By MJD

See the previous absurdly premature playoff picture here.

AFC First-Round Byes:
Indianapolis Colts
Cincinnati Bengals

Other AFC Divisional Champions:
San Diego Chargers
New England Patriots

AFC Wild Cards:
Denver Broncos
Pittsburgh Steelers

NFC First-Round Byes:
New Orleans Saints
Minnesota Vikings

Other NFC Divisional Champions:
Dallas Cowboys
Arizona Cardinals

NFC Wild Cards:
Green Bay Packers
Atlanta Falcons

• The Bengals and Chargers are both 8-3, tied for the second-best record in the AFC, but it took about .4 seconds to decide to give the Bengals the nod for the second first-round bye spot. The Chargers, bless their hearts, feel a tad flimsy to me. The Bengals have a stronger ground game, and they're better at stopping the run. They're built on a sturdier foundation. Fortunately, if the issue is still between these two teams on Dec. 20, they'll get to decide things on the field.

• I gave New England a brief moment of consideration for the two-spot as well, since the Patriots are just one game out, and I can forgive a team for laying an egg in the Superdome. It happens, especially if you don't play there often. Teams get in there, and they play like they're high. I don't know why. What I'm saying here is that the Patriots aren't as bad as they looked on Monday night, and I still see them as a major factor in the AFC. That said, I didn't feel like the rest of their schedule was soft enough to give them the benefit of the doubt for the two-spot.

• Denver, on the hand, has a remaining schedule softer than Ben Roethlisberger (notes). (Sorry, Hines Ward (notes) wrote that last sentence.) It still has two against Kansas City and it gets Oakland at home, so the Broncos should be looking at 10 wins, regardless. The other two are against Indy and Philadelphia.

• And yes, I have Pittsburgh over Baltimore, despite the results of Sunday night's contest. They're both 6-5 right now, both have two gimmes left on the schedule (Baltimore with Detroit and Oakland, Pittsburgh with Oakland and Cleveland), and let's not kid ourselves about that rematch in Pittsburgh. You don't think home-field advantage and Ben Roethlisberger's presence tilt the rematch in favor of Pittsburgh? When the Steelers played into overtime without either of those advantages?

• I feel like I should mention Jacksonville because it's also 6-5, but the Jaguars' next four are a little rough: Houston and Miami are both tough opponents, and they're followed by Indianapolis and a game in New England.

• A handful of 5-6 teams are still alive in the AFC, but they'll probably have to run the table if they want in. If any team's going to do that, it almost has to be Tennessee, doesn't it?

• The only NFC division where the champion isn't clear-cut at this point is the East, and I'd say Dallas is on the brink of that. It felt like the Giants checked out on the season for good on Thursday night, and Philadelphia feels like the most beatable 7-4 team in NFL history. Not that things can't change, because the Cowboys' cupcake schedule is behind them and the rest of their schedule turns into a cupcake made by this thing. GIANT, CAKE-SIZED CUPCAKES.

• About Philadelphia, I think I might be overly angry with the Eagles because their narrow win over Washington was ... well, we'll just say it was better for my bookie than it was for me. But really, when's the last time the Eagles were impressive? It wasn't in wins against Washington or Chicago, and it wasn't in losses to Dallas or San Diego. That takes us back to Week 8.

• That brings us to Atlanta, which I also don't feel good about, but Chris Redman (notes) at least deserves a chance. If Matt Ryan (notes) is done for the year, obviously, Atlanta's chances take a nosedive. He's definitely out for this weekend, which is unfortunate, because Atlanta plays Philadelphia and there's an NFC wild-card spot ON THE LINE.

The Week 12 NFL Quarterback Power Rankings

On 12/01/2009, In NFL, By MJD

Shutdown Corner presents the weekly quarterback power rankings. They're just as arbitrarily decided as normal power rankings, except they rank quarterbacks, not whole teams. Rankings are based on play this year alone and meant to represent who is playing the best football at the current moment.

1. Drew Brees (notes), New Orleans Saints
		So that was a pretty solid performance last night, yes? Still, Brees laughed in Suzy Kolber's face last night when she suggested it was a nearly perfect performance. What's this guy want? He had a perfect quarterback rating, exactly five incompletions, and his team beat the hell out of the Patriots. What else was he supposed to do, rebuild the Ninth Ward at halftime, and capture Bin Laden during one of the 843,238 commercial breaks? Take it easy on yourself, Drew.
2. Brett Favre (notes), Minnesota Vikings
		I know a lot of you think I'm a Favre Hater, but -- well, actually, yeah, I might be. I promise you, though, before Drew Brees put on that show last night, I had my mind made up to bump Favre up the number one spot this week. It felt like a touchdown was a real possibility every time he dropped back against the Bears. He made every throw a quarterback could be asked to make. They were helpless against him. I'm almost certain that he'll end up at number one here at some point over the next few weeks.
3. Peyton Manning (notes), Indianapolis Colts
		Statistically, Peyton's effort against the Texans wasn't his finest, but one interception was a "hit as he was throwing" job, and the other was an inconsequential pick just before halftime. Regardless, the second half turned into "This is why I'm Peyton Manning, and that is why you're Matt Schaub (notes)" time. Peyton rose to the occasion, Schaub didn't, and that was the difference.
4. Philip Rivers (notes), San Diego Chargers
		I'm hesitant to move Rivers up, because he's been playing so well while in the number seven spot in this list, but it's time. His quarterback rating has been over 100 for three consecutive weeks now, and two of those were over 130. The accuracy he puts on his deep balls is stunning, and he trusts his tall receivers to go up and get it over smaller corners. His yards per completion numbers are second only to Brees.
5. Aaron Rodgers (notes), Green Bay Packers
		Rodgers just keeps putting up the numbers and -- hold the phone -- he's only been sacked three times over the last two weeks. He's got a big game coming up on Monday night against a Baltimore team with a secondary that can be beaten. Rodgers has to be huge in that game.
6. Ben Roethlisberger (notes), Pittsburgh Steelers
		Roethlisberger stays in the same spot he occupied before he was sidelined by a concussion. Judging from the prognosis given by noted neurologists Hines Ward (notes) and Santonio Holmes (notes), I'd expect him to be back this week, but at the same time, there's probably no harm in resting him a bit longer with the Raiders and Browns up next on the schedule.
7. Tom Brady (notes), New England Patriots
		I didn't want to drop Brady this far, but he was just juxtaposed with Drew Brees, and it wasn't pretty for Tom. Both interceptions he threw were "What the hell was that?" moments, and he produced no touchdowns to offset them. Brian Hoyer (notes) actually finished the game with a higher quarterback rating.
8. Matt Schaub, Houston Texans
		I promise I'll stop pounding on Schaub after this. I guess I was just disappointed. I really felt like the Texans could've won either game they played against the Colts this season, and they just let them both slip away. Schaub is still third in the league in yards and fifth in touchdowns, so I don't want to get too caught up in what he's not doing.
9. Vince Young (notes), Tennessee Titans
		It didn't make sense to hold him out any longer. Even if his sample size is smaller, his season stats are right in line with those of guys like Flacco, Romo, Orton and Palmer, the rest of the guys hovering around the fringes of the top ten, and Young is coming off an incredible performance. I still have trouble wrapping my head around the idea that Vince Young is a good pocket passer. I wonder if one of those, "Uh oh, now teams have film on me, and they'll take away my tendencies" streaks is coming. I know, film of him existed before, but the VY of today is essentially a brand new quarterback.
10. Joe Flacco (notes), Baltimore Ravens
		Flacco had a pretty solid game against Pittsburgh; solid enough that I'm willing to no longer hold that Week 9 performance against Cincinnati against him. For Ravens fans, it's not like there's any such thing as an "ugly" win over Pittsburgh anyway.
*Noses pressed against the glass: Tony Romo (notes),* Dallas Cowboys Donovan McNabb (notes), Philadelphia Eagles Kurt Warner (notes), Arizona Cardinals

Tagged with: Arizona Cardinals • Baltimore Ravens • Body • Brett Favre • Dallas Cowboys • E-Play • football • Green Bay Packers • Houston Texans • Indianapolis Colts • Layer • Minnesota Vikings • New England Patriots • New Orleans Saints • Philadelphia Eagles • Pittsburgh Steelers • rowing • San Diego Chargers • Tennessee Titans • Tom Brady

The 10 best plays of the decade

On 12/01/2009, In NFL, By Chris Chase

Time is running short on the last year of the '00s, so it's time to dive into the daunting task of ranking the NFL's best of the decade. Best what? Best everything. We're going with a series of top 10 lists, and if something miraculous happens between now and Dec. 31, well, we'll just have to catch it at the end of 2019.

10. Michael Vick's (notes) TD run, regular season, 2001

Before the bottle at the airport and the flipping off of fans and the dogs and the prison time and the overhyped comeback, there was a brief moment when it looked like Michael Vick would be the future of the NFL. A magical 46-yard touchdown run in overtime against the Vikings, in which Vick looked like he could be tackled only by accident, made the non-believers believe and the believers go bonkers. The win in Lambeau two months later only intensified the hoopla.

9. Tony Romo (notes) botches the snap, NFC wild card, 2007

For an instant it looked like Romo was going to recover the fumbled snap and run it into the end zone. But he was tackled at the goal line after his mad dash. The Cowboys still haven't won a playoff game since the 1996 season.

8. Kevin Dyson's stretch, Super Bowl, 2000

Kevin Dyson, the Tennessee Titans wide receiver who gallantly fell short of the end zone on the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV, and Steve McNair (notes) get more recognition for this play than Mike Jones, the Rams linebacker who made the game-saving tackle.

7. Fourth-and-26, NFC divisional playoff, 2004

Trailing 17-14 late in a divisional playoff game against the Green Bay Packers, the Philadelphia Eagles faced a fourth-and-26. It looked like the game was all but over. But Donovan McNabb (notes) evaded the Green Bay rush and heaved the ball downfield to Freddie Mitchell for a first down. David Akers (notes) hit a game-tying field goal later in the drive and then nailed a game-winner in overtime.

6. The tuck rule, AFC divisional playoff, 2001

It's still a stupid rule.

5. Antonio Freeman's Monday Night miracle, regular season, 2001

In overtime of a Monday Night Football game against the Vikings, Brett Favre (notes) had his deep pass deflected by Cris Dishman, as his intended receiver, Freeman, fell to the ground. Somehow, the ball deflected off an upright Dishman, hit Freeman's back and ricocheted into his outstretched hands. Untouched, Freeman scampered 15 yards for the game-winning touchdown and led Al Michaels to exclaim, "He did WHAT?!"

4. Harrison rumbles 100 yards before halftime, Super Bowl, 2009

The Cardinals were on the verge of going up before halftime in the last Super Bowl. But Kurt Warner (notes) threw the ball right to Steelers linebacker James Harrison, who huffed and puffed his way the length of the field for one of the biggest momentum swings in Super Bowl history.

3. Roethlisberger saves Bettis from infamy, AFC divisional playoff, 2006

The game was over. With a three-point lead and the ball on the Colts' 2-yard line, all Pittsburgh had to do was run out the clock to advance to the AFC championship game. But with Indy having all three timeouts, the Steelers called for the normally-sure-handed Jerome Bettis to run the ball up the middle. He fumbled, the ball was scooped up by Nick Harper (notes), who had an open field in front of him and looked like he was going to turn Bettis into Joe Pisarcik and score one of the most improbable wins in NFL history. But Harper zigged when he should have zagged and ran near Ben Roethlisberger (notes), who made a tremendous tackle at the 42-yard line. The Colts still had a chance to win, but Mike Vanderjagt (notes) missed a 42-yarder as time expired.

2. Tyree's catch, Super Bowl, 2008

The greatest play in Super Bowl history wasn't good enough to get to No. 1 on this list? There's one reason: The awe-inspiring throw and catch (by Eli Manning (notes) and David Tyree (notes), respectively) was only possible because of a massive defensive breakdown by the Pats line. (In this, it reminds me of ~~Jason~~ Jeremy Giambi not sliding on the famous Jeter flip play.)

1. Music City Miracle, AFC wild card, 2000

Just eight days into 2000, the Titans made the play of the decade. A Steve Christie field goal put the Bills ahead with 16 seconds to go, seemingly validating Wade Phillips' decision to start Rob Johnson (notes) over Doug Flutie. But on the ensuing kickoff, Lorenzo Neal (notes) caught the kick, handed to Frank Wycheck who threw laterally (and controversially) across the field to Kevin Dyson, who ran 75 yards for the game-winning touchdown. The play, called "Home run throwback" by the Titans instantly became known as the Music City Miracle.

Comments, criticisms, omissions, and your own top ten lists are encouraged in the comments below.

Tagged with: Brett Favre • football • Green Bay Packers • Layer • Philadelphia Eagles • Tennessee Titans • YSO

Charles Woodson / Packers | Woodson has productive game Week 12

On 11/27/2009, In Fantasy, NFL, By FantasySP / ALL / Player News

Tom Pelissero, of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, reports Green Bay Packers CB Charles Woodson recorded six tackles, two interceptions, one sack and a fumble recovery in Week 12. Woodson returned one of the interceptions for a touchdown. Defensive coordinator Dom Capers said he believes Woodson is the best defensive player in the NFL right now.

Read more Charles_Woodson news

Tagged with: Green Bay Packers